It takes time to establish a garden or to landscape an area. The pride one takes in a bountiful garden, or a well manicured landscape, should not be overshadowed by the task of weeding. Tools come to the aid of home gardeners and landscapers, so that they can perform specific tasks when working the earth. Some tools may be used in gardens for planting, cultivating or weeding. In landscaping, there are tools that may be used for weeding, edging or contouring.
Dibbles are used for planting bulbs. Spades are used when digging holes for smaller plants. A hoe with a rectangular blade is used for making furrows when planting seeds, making a hole, hilling the soil, and chopping weeds.
After the initial establishment of a garden, the greatest amount of time spent by the gardener is the time spent weeding. Weeds detract from the appearance of gardens and landscapes. They absorb the moisture, nutrients, and sunlight that the plants need to flourish.
In a perfect world, weeds are attacked early before their root system can become well established. A cultivator type tool is useful when the weeds first appear. This loosens and aerates the soil. It disturbs the root system of the weeds, causing them to dry out which kills the weeds. Between rows in open areas, a powered tiller might be used, but is usually too large to weed around plants. Hand tools give the user greater control in getting rid of the weeds. They allow for more precise weeding, especially around plants that are close together.
Many of the available hand tools are inefficient because they are useful for one or two specific tasks. A loop-type hoe can be used in open areas to cultivate the soil and remove weeds. A garden tool with a pointed tip removes weeds that are very close to the plants.
Gardeners should not have to carry multiple tools to accomplish these various tasks. The tools used should shorten the time spent tending to the garden and allow more time to enjoy the fruits of one's labor. Tools should be easy to use, versatile and efficient when weeding, cultivating, and performing general maintenance of gardens and landscapes.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,093,031, issued to William E. Portz on Jun. 6, 1978, shows a pendulum, closed-loop type hoe. It moves a stirrup-shaped blade that is sharpened on both sides, forward and backward through the ground. The tool head is attached to an elongated, cylindrical handle. The closed-loop design makes it difficult to weed between tightly spaced plants. The blade being very thin and articulated makes this tool unsuitable in weeding situations that require a chopping action. When used for cultivating, the articulated blade abruptly stops when a rock is encountered and then transfers the shock up through the handle. The tool automatically adjusting the blade angle causes a jerking sensation with an accompanying rattling noise.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,470,972 B1, issued to Leslie O. Trampe on Oct. 29, 2002, depicts an implement where the round shaft coming out of the handle has two angles. At the point of the second bend, the round shaft is flattened and terminates in a V-notch (teeth) which are sharpened. The main function of this tool is for weeding. It lacks suitability for other functions such as cultivating open areas, making furrows for planting, or edging. Using tools with a single purpose requires purchasing, and transporting more tools than one would like. The sharpened V-notch is designed to cut the weed, rather than to capture it, for pulling. The tool is limited in usefulness because the V-notch is the only method of weed removal. It is not suitable for slicing or chopping the weeds. This implement can only remove a few weeds at a time, which renders it less productive.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,841,414, issued to William L. Perkins on Oct. 15, 1974, shows a garden tool having a flattened shaft that extends straight out from the handle. The lower end of the shaft is bent at a right angle, making it perpendicular to the shaft. This elongated projection is sharpened at the very tip and on one edge. This tool is designed as a weeder and removes weeds by having the user make two specific actions. First, the tip of the tool is “driven” into the ground close to the weed, using a chopping action. The tool is then rotated clockwise so that the one sharpened edge of the bent shaft cuts the roots of the weed below the ground. The user then pulls up the weed, thus removing the surface growth of the weed. When a tool has a single point, or tip, it has a tendency to glance when hitting a fibrous stalk or a rock. The tool may have to be removed and driven back into the ground. This would require extra effort on the part of the operator. This tool is useful for removing a few weeds at a time in a small area. This makes weeding less productive and more tedious.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,177,864, issued to Edlo Donnini on Dec. 11, 1979, depicts a gardening tool having a long handle, to which a rectangular rod is attached. The rod extends from the handle and is formed in a semi-circular rod portion. The working end of the rod is wider than the rest of the rod and is notched and sharpened at the very tip. The working end of the implement is used to extract weeds and create furrows when it is pulled thru the soil. The shape of the rod and the working end are similar to a cobra that is ready to strike. The usefulness of this tool is limited because of the relatively narrow width of the flat planar surface of the tip. Because this working area is in line with the handle, the tool is primarily only useful in a pulling action.
“Johnny's Selected Seeds” catalog 2009, page 188, item (A) 9374, shows a long-handled, wire formed garden tool. The working portion is comprised of a 5/16 inch diameter round rod or wire shaft that is bent, curved, and has its base formed into a flattened blade. The end of the blade is rounded and blunt. As stated in the description, “ . . . this tool allows a standing worker to remove small weeds . . . ” The blunt end lessens the control that the operator has in the tool. The tip will tend to glance when driven, or skate when pushed or pulled to score hard soil. The long wire formed shaft between the handle socket and blade flexes when tough weeds or compacted soil is encountered. This flexing of the shaft requires more effort by the operator which in turn causes operator fatigue. This tool has a thick blade, relative to its width, which displaces more soil that may have to be redistributed. Hilling around plants is more challenging due to the narrowness of the blade. When encountering rocks or hard, compacted soil, the smaller diameter handle also flexes which absorbs the force that should be transferred to the tool's blade.
Therefore, there remains a need for a gardening tool that can more easily capture and remove weeds, and requires minimum effort by the user, and has multipurpose use.